In With The Storm
by Sosie98
Summary: After getting engaged to Tony Stark, Pepper Potts' life has been better than she ever imagined, but suddenly when her parents come to town, everything changes. Pepper must lie in order to keep her parents dreams for her alive. Just when it all seems to be getting better, someone she thought she could trust turns out to be her worst enemy. Pepperony Pepper/Tony
1. Just a teensy, little white lie

_A/N: This is my first Pepperony fanfic so I am soooo excited! I've become a Pepperony shipper very recently and this is my first story. I've written about seven chapters so far but I'm going to wait to post the rest before you make comments:) So click the magic button, and I'll decide if I'll go on or not:)_

Chapter 1

"You know the problem I have with you Tony? You're so frickin' irritating."

"You know the problem I have with you, Pepper? You're always working!"

"Why does it matter?" Pepper shrugged, "I'm your employee. Contrary to your belief, employees work and show up to meetings on time."

"But you're also my fiancé, and fiancé's hang out with their husband-to-be's!"

They were sitting on the couch (Pepper typing and Tony playing with her hair) in the middle of Tony Stark's Malibu mansion; not a place you ever want to find yourself alone with a bored Tony.

"You're angry, Potts," he said with a smirk, circling the couch and staring at her from all angles, " Is it PMS or something more?"

Pepper blushed and shoved him away, "Oh… just go work on your cars."

"I'm gonna find out, Pep," he said with a waggle of his finger, as he walked down the steps to his basement, "And when I do you're going to wish I never got involved."

Pepper already wished he hadn't gotten involved thus far. Once Tony had a suspicion he would follow it all the way to the end, and she did not want him around tomorrow. So, no, maybe it wasn't PMS that was bothering her: it was her impending doom.

It had all started with a phone call. A phone call that she'd ignored and then avoided calling back for the past two weeks. I know, I know, it wasn't like her, but this phone call wasn't about work. It was from her parents, the parents that she hadn't talk to in fifteen years.

It hadn't been a meaningful split. Pepper honestly had just moved on with her adult life and forgotten all about her old one. Between being CEO of Stark Industries and dealing with its namesake there wasn't a lot of time left in the day. Then, suddenly, when she became romantically involved with Tony, everything changed.

Maybe because he wanted to impress her or maybe because of that stint in Afghanistan a while back (that he was intent on bringing up at every faculty meeting to make people feel bad for him), but Tony finally started doing what his old job was supposed to be. He would fill out paperwork and check the bills and make sure everyone was doing their job. It took a lot of stress off Pepper and it made Tony a whole heck of a lot happier. It was only natural, then that once they got engaged, Pepper gave Tony back the position and he made her co-CEO of Stark Industries, much to the uproar of business analysts everywhere: "A Match Made In Hell Will Lead Stark Industries To Much The Same Place." But, back to the point. This adjustment gave Pepper Potts a whole lot more time on her hands to do pretty much anything she wanted.

Pepper was pretty sure (or at least hoped) in the back of her mind that her parents knew about her job (that was one thing she was not eager to explain), but since everything about the engagement was still on the down low, she wasn't sure if they knew anything at all about Tony. This would inevitably suck all their dreams and hopes for her down the drain, if they found out. According to her mother: "Tony Stark is a heartless little bastard and if he ever goes near my darling little girl I'll rip him limb from limb."

According to her father: "He's kind of an idiot, I guess, but he is Iron Man, so that kind of makes up for it."

So, Pepper decided to lie. Tell a big, fat lie, not a measly little white one, and deny all connection to Tony on a personal level. So, when she got on the phone and was expecting a interrogative phone call she was surprised to find that her mother was politely talkative and was asking how things were going with _modeling. _Yes, modeling. Pepper had quit modeling in her Senior year of high school and hadn't told her mother anything about it, so, apparently, her mother had thought that was still her bread and butter. And yet another lie was added to Pepper's list.

"Oh, yes, modeling. Did a great spread for Vogue the other day. Don't know when it'll be in the mags though… so you probably shouldn't check."  
She'd finally gotten through the conversation about her ever-growing modeling career when her mother finally told her what the call was all about. They wanted to come _see_ her. They wanted to fly to California and see their daughter's two-room apartment and live through a day in her modeling job and wanted her to show them all the sights and sounds of Cali in her beat-up used car, because you know, she was 32, and to them, "just starting out."

By the time Pepper's mother got off the phone, Pepper had agreed to several things she couldn't do and lied about around twenty. Her parents were coming in two days. Tony knew nothing (well, besides, his suspicions) about it, Rhodey knew nothing about it, in fact, no one knew anything! Pepper was all by herself in this huge bubble of a lie that she'd created.

She'd moved into Tony's house when they were still dating which had been at least a year ago if not more, so instead of an apartment, her parents were going to find their daughter in a mansion (with the man they hated the most). She'd exchanged the used car for an Audi R8 the moment she began working for Tony Stark. Modeling was absolutely nonexistent.

There was only one possible outcome for this story: her parents would hate her indefinitely, and Tony would be bloodied up by the end of it.

_A/N: Short chapter but there's lots more twists and turns to come: click the magic button! Review! Review! Review! Even the shortest review is important3_


	2. That Would Be Real Bad

_A/N: Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for all the story alerting and commenting! I woke up this morning and my inbox was inundated:) This is kinda of a short chapter, but remember there will be a LOT of chapters in this story. I'm going to start working on the next chapters now and keep uploading the seven as more reviews keep coming in:) Review! Review! Review! I'll be posting all my story alert-ers and reviewers at the end of the story, so keep going:)_

Chapter 2

If the drive to the airport had taken any longer, Pepper probably would have exploded with nervous anticipation. It was the same feeling that she'd had when Tony came home from Afghanistan, except this time she wasn't deliriously happy. It didn't help that she'd completely lost her mind and called Happy for the limo. This was totally not sticking to her story.

Happy pulled up to the side of the airport and Pepper jumped out, checking for any signs of Tony. He was supposed to be leaving on an international flight to China today (if he didn't miss it) to talk about flight regulations and rules for flying the suit overseas (The Real Deal: Tony kept being shot at by officials who didn't know what was in the sky and they wanted to stop him flying over their countries.)

She sat by the gate rubbing her knees dressed in full business attire. This was _not _looking good for her. How she could even be compared to a model while dressed in this. She _looked _like a CEO, it was her job after all. She was getting plenty of looks from people who recognized her and lots and lots of pointing fingers. This was why, most of the time, Tony would send someone to pick up guests from the airport. But that wouldn't have gone with her story, besides, if she was at the house waiting, Tony would have a lot more time to interrogate her and figure out what was going on.

It was then that the flight emptied and she stood, watching for her parents, teetering in six inch heels. Then she saw them, her mother in jeans and a soft tee shirt, appropriate for travel, and her father in pretty much the same. They both had white hair, something she was definitely not prepared for, and their carry-on bags looked as old as they did. In fact, Pepper was pretty sure she recognized one as her own.

"Darling," said her mother running forward, and not hesitating to look her up and down, "What on Earth are you wearing?"

"Oh, nothing," she shrugged, kissing her father on the cheek, " Just the first thing that was in my closet."

The walk back to the car was even more strenuous.

"Why are all those people staring?"  
"It's probably because of that hideous outfit she's wearing."  
"Mother!" said Pepper, clearly affronted, "It's very nice."

"Maybe if you're 35 and a businesswoman, not for a 25 year old model…"

"Mom, it… wait, did you just say 25?"

So, Pepper was now twenty-five. That lie was going to be unraveled the moment her mother dug up her birth certificate, but no matter. Pepper was starting not to care. Her parents were turning out to be just as touchy and judgmental as she remember them.

Happy was waiting for her out front, lounging on the hood of his limo like someone who had been driving a long time. He tipped his hat to Pepper's parents as they approached and went to start the car, oblivious to the Mr. and Mrs. Potts' mouths had turned into "O's."

"You got a limo?" said Mrs. Potts, not looking happy.

"Surprise!" said Pepper, trying to form her face into something resembling a smile.

She was in desperate need of Tony. He would know what to say to lighten the mood. They climbed into the limo and settled into a stony silence until the car started to move again.

"What a scene! Virginia, I'm ashamed."

"I was just trying to be nice." She grumbled, her head bent down to her knees.

She unconsciously took out her blackberry and began checking her emails, sighing when she saw that the inbox was full. She began to answer each and every one of them. Some of them were easy, just "No comment," about she and Tony's relationship, but others were harder and she had to stop when she saw her father peering over her shoulder at something she'd written.

Her father turned to her mother, "Since when does a model have to write press releases?"

Pepper relaxed, that was an easy one, "You have to get higher up than I am to have someone do all these things for you. I just had to write a press release so everyone will know how I'm doing. You know, how the modeling career's going. Phone is just ringing off the hook these days."

As if on cue, her phone started ringing and she picked it up, seeing Tony's face on the caller ID she connected quickly, but not before her Father saw it and gave her a startled look.

"Hey, what's up? No… no… I can't. Not right now. Wait, what?" Pepper could feel her mother and father staring at her, "Don't you dare. I need you to clean the house anyway. Because it's dirty! No, I know… sorry… just a little stressed. Please don't do anything impulsive before I get there. Yah… would you? Okay… bye."

"Who was that?" Mrs. Potts asked.

"A friend of mine."

Pepper's father didn't say anything, just looked at her curiously; probably because he couldn't imagine Tony Stark as Pepper's friend. Her parents had always thought she would amount to nothing, after all, much of her family hadn't. The guys were supposed to be the strong ones. Women were the ones meant to stay at home and take care of the children. The fact that Pepper wasn't married by twenty-five (thirty-two technically) was horrible to them. If they found out that she was the co-CEO of a multi-billion dollar industry engaged to the other co-CEO who just happened to be an ex-playboy really hot billionaire? Well, four words; it would be real bad.

_A/N: I had fun with this chapter. I love story development:) Now click the magic button! It's right there:) Click it!_


	3. A Bit of Improvisation

_A/N: Much longer chapter:) Glad to see all the reviews, but keep going! I need to know if I should keep writing! Plenty of twists and turns are to come and I'm really excited to share them with you all, BUT I only will if I get reviews:) _

_Abbey Lee: Pepper's parents have always had old-fashioned ideals. They think that the man of the house should do the work and the woman should stay at home with the children (which I think will be talked about in this chapter). If they found out that Pepper was CEO they would be the kind of people to be opposed to a woman having so much power, simply because they are old-fashioned and that was a view back then. The fact that Pepper's parents don't remember her age was brought up simply to illustrate the fact that her parents haven't talked to her in a long time and really don't care that much about her to remember even simple things. Thanks for reviewing! _

Chapter 3

Pepper would have loved to see their expression on replay as they pulled up to the Malibu mansion, if it hadn't been such a dire time. She'd already explained that it _was_ an apartment building and not a house. It was just a very nice one. So nice that the scanners built in under the house were able to scan her tires and let her in. It wasn't like she knew the owner or anything, it was just something they did for everyone. Yeah… Pepper's pants were on _fire_ today.

The limo stopped and Happy grabbed their luggage from the back, unlocked the front door with his spare key, and let them inside. Pepper was still contemplating on how to brief Tony silently through eye contact on what was going on when he walked up the stairs, looking recognizable as ever and covered in engine grease. He was wearing sweat pants and a tight black tee shirt and Pepper remembered why she was attracted to him in the first place.

"Hello, Mr. Stark." She said with a smile, and he looked up at her confused.

"Hi, Mrs. Potts, may I ask who these lovely people are?"

"These are my parents, I was hoping you would have an extra room open for them. I really didn't want to have us all crammed in my apartment."

He caught on much more quickly than she ever thought he would, "Of course, Mrs. Potts. Right this way, senor and senorita."

Her parents were staring so blatantly at him that you would have thought they'd seen a ghost.

"I'm Tony Stark, by the way," a smile playing on his lips, oh, how he loved to act, "I own the apartment building. I own a lot around here actually."

"I've heard," Mrs. Potts whispered, her voice shaking. They climbed the stairs and Tony showed them into one of the six or seven guest bedrooms. He handed them towels and some soap and smiled.

"Oh, by the way," he said, "Jarvis, introduce yourself, please!"

"Welcome to The Stark Estate, I am Jarvis, the automated intelligence, or generally smart robot at your assistance at all times. I will be ready at your call to alert someone. Anything you need, please just say my name and give me the order."

"Thank you, Jarvis."  
"You're very welcome, sir."

"I think that's all you need, Pepper's…er… I mean, Virginia's room is downstairs. Let Jarvis know if you need anything."

"Thank you," said Mrs. Potts quietly, her eyes still steadfastly fixed on the floor.

Tony closed the door behind him and made his way downstairs quickly to where Pepper was struggling to fit the luggage into an empty storage closet. He just stood there for a while watching her take out all her frustrations on that simple little thing, kicking it and punching it with her fists. It seemed to him as though it was uncalled for. The luggage hadn't done anything wrong. It had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

When Pepper finally sank to the floor, head in her hands, the luggage was still hanging halfway out of the closet. Tony had always known that there were some things Pepper just couldn't do by herself, and apparently fitting luggage in closets was one of them. He walked over to her and picked it up storing it securely in one of the high racks that she probably couldn't reach, even in her heels.

He closed the door behind him and sat next to her on the floor, leaning up against the wall, both of them blankly staring at a large framed photograph of Iron Man zooming across the sky. Pepper had always said it looked like a shooting star. Tony said that made sense, since a star was just as hot as he was. It was a moment before he spoke.

"What did you tell them?"

She stared at the floor, "They think I'm a twenty-five year old model who lives in a nice little apartment building in California with no romantic involvement whatsoever. In fact, I think they have a sneaking suspicion I'm a lesbian."

And that was when they both burst out laughing, every little lie she'd told over the course of the day seemed to come out in that one moment. There was no reason to stress. No reason to care much. With Tony she found herself feeling that way more and more often. It was as if he balanced her out.

She rested her head on his chest and then suddenly bolted upright.

"Why the hell aren't you on your way to China?"

"I didn't feel like going, besides, you obviously need my assistance." He said, offering a hand to help her up.

"I can't believe you! We already paid for the tickets."

"What does it matter Mrs. Potts?" he said pulling her to him and dancing with her ballroom style into the kitchen, "You would have died without my back-up anyway. This definitely looks like a house to me, there's no way they would have believed it was an apartment if I hadn't confirmed it."

"Fine, Tony… but you do know I'm going to have to reschedule it, right?"

"Of course you are. That doesn't mean that I'm going to have to go."

"And I'd thought you changed… obviously that stint in Afghanistan did nothing but make you even more irresponsible."

"Aww… don't give me the puppy dog eyes, Pep… it's not gonna work… all it's gonna do is damage your pride!" Tony rolled his eyes, "Okay, fine I'll go. But for the record, it was only for you. I wouldn't have said yes to Rhodey."

"I'm flattered."

"So, what's the plan today?"

"Ummm…"

"Gasp!" said Tony, holding up one hand to her mouth, "Is Pepper Potts being impulsive? Am I rubbing off on her?"

"I have no plan."

"She has no plan! My life is over."  
"Shhh…" she whispered, smiling, "They might hear you."

"So… how bout we ask what they want to do."

Pepper took some ice cream out of the fridge and they both took turns eating with large spoons out of the bucket.

"_We _will not be doing anything because _we _are not involved with each other. I will be struggling to find someplace to take them while you go grocery shopping."

"What?"

"You told me you wanted to go grocery shopping yesterday."

"Yes…" Tony said, rubbing his eye with the back of his hand, "But that was before I knew that there was going to be drama in the hizzle. And you know as well as I do that Tony Stark cannot resist drama."

"Tony, do you think it would be natural for the CEO of a company to go gallivanting around with one of the people who lives in one of his many privately owned apartment complexes? My parents will start to wonder why you're taking such a special interest in me."

"So why don't you just tell them the truth?"

"I can't do that."

"Why?"

"Because my mother said she'd rip you limb from limb if you ever got close to me."

"What'd your father say?" he asked, leaning up against the kitchen counter.

"He said you seem like an idiot, but that you being Iron Man makes up for it."

"Smart man. What do I care, anyway? It's not like she could hurt me if she knew you cared about me."

"No, Tony. She wouldn't hurt you," said Pepper sarcastically, "She'd only disown me and basically cut me off from her life."

"Like she's done the past fifteen years?"

Sadly, Tony was right. Pepper really had nothing to fear.

"I guess you're right, but I've already started this act so I'm going to keep on making her believe it's real."  
Tony kissed her on the lips and held her tight, "You've always been a great actress, Peps."

"I know." She mumbled into his shirt, "Now get off me before someone sees."

A/N: Now click the magic button! Do it! Review:)


	4. A Really Awkward Limo Ride

_Hey everybody:) THANK YOU for commenting and reviewing! I love hearing your opinions and answering your questions. Ask my anything:) Anyway, love you guys... here's the next chapter. Hope you enjoy it! I have a lot of chapters planned so be aware that if the set-up takes a while that's why. Okay... read and review!_

_*** Someone brought to my attention that the Stark Tower is NY not LA:) Sorry... I guess I don't have all my facts straight. Didn't look like New York in the movie to me. Anyways... here it's in LA3 Much shorter commute time.***_

Chapter 4

"And this here is the grocery store, where I shop… and this is…"

"Virginia," said Mrs. Potts, cutting her off, "When are we going to get to see where you work?"

"It's shut down for the week, Mom, you're not going to be able to see it."

"How they can shut down a modeling agency for a week is beyond me. Honestly Virginia, are you sure this place is legit?"

"Though I treasured this conversation from the moment you said legit, Mom, please stop doubting me."

Mrs. Potts nodded and rolled her eyes, even though Pepper could tell she was enjoying herself. Her mother had requested the limo again (Pepper had pretended like it was way too much money for her, but for her mother's sake, she had gotten it anyway.) and they were gliding their way into Hollywood. She figured her mother had wanted to see it.

"And that up there's Stark Tower, it's the huge home for everything Stark Industries, however, if a plane were to run into that thing it wouldn't knock it down. It's engineered too well for that, Tony and… his friend, they planned out the whole thing. They're geniuses. Co-CEO's of the company you know."

As they slid past Stark Tower, she longed to run up to the 100th floor flat and just sit with Tony and work on her laptop. She wanted everything to be back to normal. She almost missed not being able to get any work done with him around.

Her father caught her staring up at it and she quickly looked away, but she could tell that he had his suspicions that he wasn't sharing with her mother. Confirming her thoughts he immediately turned to Mrs. Potts and started talking about Tony, much to Pepper's embarrassment.

"Speaking of Mr. Stark, he was much nicer than I thought he would be, wasn't he Elaine?"

"He was fine," she said, stopping and then starting again, "But all horrible men start out like that. They're manipulative. He doesn't have any heart and soul under that mask, I can tell you that."

Pepper restrained herself from screaming, "Mother, I don't think you know Mr. Stark well enough to judge him like that. He's actually a very nice man."

Mrs. Potts mouth set in a thin line, jumping immediately to the worst, "Have you been sleeping with him, Virginia? I noticed that no one else was in the apartment building this morning. Did you notice that too, Harold?"

Mr. Potts harrumphed with no distinct answer.

"I have _not _been sleeping with him, mother. If I ever slept with someone it would be because we were engaged or married and I am certainly not married to Mr. Stark."

Yes, but she was engaged.

"I certainly hope not. You know your name? Virginia. Yes, we thought it was beautiful but we also gave it to you so you would stay a virgin until your wedding day. It was for us, a hope for your future. So that you would not let a man stray you away from your dreams. Do not let your heart override your head, dear."

"I know that, mother."

They sat in silence for a moment and then Pepper finally came out with what had been on her mind lately. She might as well tell the truth about something.

"By the way, would you be offended if I asked you not to call me Virginia?"

Her mother looked her up and down, an expression of extreme venom on her already hawk-like features. Pepper swallowed.

"Well, at work I'm known as Virginia Potts, so… so… if someone hears the name they're bound to rush over and… try to get my autograph. I just don't want all the attention."

Her mother looked angrier than ever, "Then what do you want me to call you?"

Pepper looked down at her feet and scrunched her nose, "Well… well, all my close friends… they call me Pepper. It's sort of a nickname."

"Pepper Potts." Her mother restated. Her face was blank of all expression, "I heard him call you Pepper and then change it to Virginia at the last moment. I thought you said you didn't know Mr. Stark that well."

Oh _shit_. "Well, obviously Mr. Stark knows me. I've only run into him a couple of times."

She paused for a moment.

"You know what, if you're so interested in him, how about a tour of his building? Happy, Stark Industries, please."

_Now hit the magic button! DDDOOOO IT! All you people who are favoriting and alerting and following and aren't commenting: review REVIEW REVIEW! Hope you liked it:)_


	5. Pepper Becomes a Tour Guide

_Another short chapter:( I'm sorry guys, I just write things in short bursts. That's why the story's going to be so long:) I really like the way this chapter ends so I'm happy with it, even though it was really hard to write. Just so you guys know, to all those people who have been reviewing saying it's very unrealistic, I know it is. I have fun writing unrealistic stories that are just adorbs and fluffy. Beware of that plot twist! The action's coming shortly:) Review please!_

_Oh and by the way... this isn't mine. A little late on the draw there. _

Chapter 5

Pepper hopped out of the limousine and let down her hair.

"Do I look recognizable, Happy?"

He sighed, used to Tony and Pepper's antics, "Yes, Ms. Potts, you most certainly do."

There was nothing to do about it now, she was going to give a tour.

The lobby was booming with people and Pepper suddenly regretted her ability to recognize every face. It felt like all eyes were on her. She still had her business clothes on, thank God, so she blended in a bit, but everyone knew who she was. She was used to it, yes, because of Tony, but she never really had loved the spotlight as much as he did it.

"Good morning Mrs. Potts," said the security officer as she held up her identification necklace that would give her an all-access pass into any room, "Should I let Mr…"

"No," Pepper interrupted quickly, "That's quite alright, Steven, I'm just hopping in and hopping out. Giving a tour."

"Got it," he said with a smile, eyeing her parents who were looking around the huge lobby with looks of astonishment on their faces.

Her parents trailed behind as she pointed out rooms, waving to people as she passed.

"When you mentioned a lot of people knowing you, I never thought it would be like this. Maybe I should call you Pepper." Said her mother, in pure awe.

"Please do."

Pepper didn't pause in her tour, acting just as if she was given a real one (which she had several times). It made everything a lot easier and it put a business distance between her and her parents, something she was thankful for.

By the end of the tour, her parents both looked tired. For once she thanked the God of Aging. They hopped back in the elevator to begin the journey down, but her mother pointed out a floor they missed.

"Virginia, floor 100? We haven't seen that."

Pepper's heart skipped a beat, "Oh, sorry… that's the private floor. That's where the suites for overnight work stays and CEO offices are located, that's employees only, and since I'm not an employee…"

"Virginia!" said her mother, looking her straight in the eye, "You just said earlier that that card can get you into any room in this building. I want to see the private floor. You either prove to me that you're not a liar or I investigate how you got that card if you don't work here."

Pepper swallowed, "Right this way."

The private floor was mainly made up of offices, so Pepper let her mother know on the way that there wouldn't be much to see. Mrs. Potts remained steadfast: private floor or she would sell out Pepper on the card that she'd "stolen." Pepper was now a thief. This was getting to be a lot to remember.

Pepper decided the moment she got out of the elevator that she would avoid the back suites as much as possible, but that was exactly where her mother wanted to go. She marched right down the aisles, curiously peering into every office. She was like a child. What she wanted was what she was going to get, even if she had to blackmail.

She didn't stop until she reached Tony's office. She didn't read the nameplate just barged in the door and Pepper heard his voice quiver for a second before regaining its strength. Obviously he was shocked. It wasn't often that Pepper's parents were around and it was even more rare for them to go running into his office complex. By the time Pepper got inside, he was sitting on her desk, positioned right in front of her nameplate.

"Two desks?" her mother was asking.

"I'm a big time CEO, and CEO's typically need two desks to hold all their stuff. Oh, hey Virginia! This is the second time in two days I've seen you. I'm beginning to think you like me or somethin'."

He wiggled his eyebrows in that sexy way of his and she shot him a glare. He smirked and looked back at Pepper's mother and father.

"I'm really sorry to usher you out of my office so soon, but I've got a meeting at 1:45 in my office, and you do NOT want to be run over by a group of irritated news broadcasters. They haven't had their coffee since my counterpart CEO was out today. Pity." He was looking straight at her, and she squished his toe with her high heel.

He grimaced but managed to hold in a yell of pain.

"How about dinner on me, I'll text you the details." He said as he pushed Pepper's parents out, "Let me just talk to your daughter one moment about letting you up here."

He closed the door and immediately turned into Pepper's angry face.

"Dinner. You invited them to dinner."

"I just wanted to have dinner with you, Pep, that's it."

"This could be a really bad idea, Tony." She warned, and he kissed her on the cheek.

"All's well that ends well."

He sat back down and his chair and spun back behind from behind her desk.

"That makes absolutely no sense," she said opening the door.

And the show begins.

"Just make sure it never happens again, Potts." He smirked.

God, did she love him.

_Awwwwww...:P I love him too, Pepper! Anyways, REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!_


	6. Dinner For Four

_Thank you for all the comments and story alerts I've gotten! Anyone know the difference between story alerting and story following? Are they the same thing? I like this chapter... the plot begins to thicken:) Have fun and keep reviewing!_

Chapter 6

The details Tony texted her were literally directions, nothing more than that. It was really hard to dress for something when you didn't know what the occasion was. Her mother came down the stairs dressed to impress in a velvet green ensemble. Pepper hoped they weren't going anywhere too fancy. She didn't want anyone to see her mother looking like that.

Pepper found herself in the master closet and started digging through all her previous dresses, deciding on a curve hugging but conservative dress. As she started pulling it on she found her mother in the doorway staring at her. She quickly pulled it on and turned around smiling.

"What are you doing in here?"

"This is my closet."

Pepper walked out of the room before her mom could ask any more questions.

The restaurant, it turned out, was definitely not an expensive one… or at least expensive at Tony Stark standards. It was Olive Garden. Pepper sat across from Tony and Mrs. Potts sat across from Mrs. Potts in the most obvious we're-totally-a-couple way ever. The breadsticks were good and the conversation was pleasant. Tony made sure he made it completely family friendly and even cracked non-innuendo-based jokes.

It was right when they were getting ready for dessert when the call came. Pepper took one look at Tony's white face and knew this wasn't a Tony problem, this was an Iron Man problem. She set down her napkin, suddenly not hungry.

"Is everything all right, Mr. Stark?"

"No, Mrs. Potts. I'm so sorry, I need to take this," he said, and the sadness in his voice was evident. He looked at Pepper directly and she saw his eyes were red.

Pepper blanched as he walked outside. She watched him through the blinds as her parents continued their conversation. It was clear he was upset and he kept rubbing his eyes. Then she saw his mannerisms change. He was getting angry. And then it faded again. No more anger, just pure sadness as he hung up the phone.

"Virginia…" said her mother, and Pepper shook her head out of the reverie, "We've been calling your name for the past five minutes."

"I'm sorry, I'm not feeling too well… I need to go to the restroom."

She watched her parents concerned eyes follow her to the back of the restaurant where she snuck out the back door and ran straight into Tony. He was sitting on a bench breathing heavily. People were staring as she sat down and hugged him tight. She could tell he was crying, but he wrapped his arms around her anyway. She laid her head on his chest.

"I'm so sorry, Peps," he whispered, "I'm really, really sorry, but…"

"Just tell me."

"I think you're going to have to go stay with your parents for a while. They're something that's going on and… California just isn't safe anymore."

"Tony," she whispered, tears running down her cheeks, "I need the details so I can understand. You know I'm like that. If I understand, we can work something out."

"Pepper, Fury told me…"

"God, I hate Nick Fury!" she yelled as quietly as she possibly could, "He thinks he can make any decision he wants to and it won't affect anyone. But it will. It will, Tony. It doesn't just affect him it affects his team, it affects their family… it affects anyone they ever cared about."

"I know," he whispered, stroking her hair, "I promise, once I get back, I'll put off leaving for as long as I can. I don't want to be running away all the time. For once, I want to run a business."

He kissed her, hard, and pulled back looking into her eyes, "I love you, Mrs. Potts. By the time I get back, you better have that wedding planned."  
She gave him a watery smile, "Love you too, Mr. Stark. I'll try my best."

He stood up, kissed her on the cheek one last time and started walking, "Pepper Potts, doesn't try she _does._"

Pepper took her blackberry out of her pocket as she started to walk inside and began typing a press release. Now she had to work out an extended leave for both of them and had to somehow convince her parents to take her in.

The restaurant was quiet and peaceful compared to the outside and she could see it starting to rain. She sat down at the table.

"Where's Mr. Stark?" her mother asked quietly.

"He…" she felt her voice start to shake, "He had to go. Something came up."

"Virginia, dear," her father suddenly said, "If there's something going on, you know we can talk about it. Your mother and I want to hear what you have to say."

"I…" Pepper trailed off and stared out the window, "Get under the table."

"What're you…"

Pepper grabbed her mother's wrist and pulled her down, "Get under the table, now!"

She barely got under the table before the glass above her shattered and the whole roof began to collapse.

_AAAAAHHHH! Who could be behind this? Start to formulate theories!:) REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!_

_Love,_

_Sosie98_


	7. A Lot More Complicated

_I'm really having a lot of fun with this story! THANKS SO MUCH to all of you commenting and reviewing:) Please check out my tumblr: , I post updates on there and links to stories often. Hope you enjoy the chapter:) I had fun with it3_

Chapter 7

Pepper was still under the table when the emergency lights in the back part of the restaurant came on, clutching her mother's hand. She felt like a little girl.

"We need to get out of here, mom."

She looked shell-shocked, as did her father. For once, it seemed that there was something that her mother wasn't immune to that Pepper was: crazy situations. Pepper crawled out from under the table, avoiding smaller pieces of glass that threatened to embed themselves in her fingers. She instantly regretted wearing her taller heels. They weren't built for running, but she couldn't take them off in this environment.

In the back of the restaurant she saw employees rushing around trying to get to where Pepper was standing, but the roof had collapsed right in front of the door and there was pretty much no way to get out… unless you were creative.

Behind them there was an uproar of shouts and all the employees propelled themselves away from the opening as fast as their legs could carry them. Behind Pepper, something stood up. She knew immediately what it was, why it was there, and presumably what it was looking for, but she had absolutely no idea what to do.

The thing was made completely of iron, like Tony's suit, but was big and bulky. On its back it carried the biggest missile she'd ever seen with the a small dot that told her it was heat-seeking. The supplier name printed on the canister told her it was a good one: Stark Industries. His helmet was bulky with the tiniest eye holes that it didn't really make any sense that he could see through them.

It didn't really matter how big this guy's weapons were, if he didn't know how to fly. Tony could fly like an expert if he was really trying and not goofing off. His helmet turned to her, looked her up and down, and ended up staring directly into her eyes. His felt like lasers, melting her to dust, but she stayed standing and kept down the throw up.

"Get out of here!" she screamed, "He's not here! He's not with us!"

He stared at her for a moment longer and then made a fist. Pepper had seen that one a million times before. Grabbing her mother by the wrist and her father by the arm she jumped out the window down to the sidewalk. She felt both of her heels break from the impact. 300 dollars wasted. The fact that she could think about that was insane in itself.

Behind her she heard a large boom and then the frequent pops of what sounded like machine gun fire. She felt the wind as shrapnel whizzed past her head as she ran into the parking lot, trying to put as much distance between her and this thing as she could.

The limo was parked in the back next to the garbage cans and as she waved to Happy he raced to turn on the car. Pepper threw open the door and pushed her parents inside, collapsing on the cushioned seats of the limo only after the door was safely closed behind her.

"Drive Happy," she yelled, "Airport."

They raced past the parking lot and got onto the freeway. Pepper closed her eyes and slumped against the seat. The restaurant was far behind them, but she could still hear the guns. They echoed in her head. She wondered if that was what Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder felt like to Tony, a constant gunfire on repeat. Pepper had heard that that was a theory of the doctors of late.

Pepper slid off her heels and pulled her box of spare sneakers from under the seat. She didn't really care if her mother didn't know where they'd come from. She figured that now, with all this going on, she'd owe her parents a long explanation and that was not going to happen now.

She pulled out her blackberry and dialed the mansion. The machine picked up, "I see you've made the choice to call me, wise choice, really, wise choice. Maybe if you call back later I won't ignore your call. Just…"

"Jarvis!" she hissed, "Access code 1265."

"Hello Mrs. Potts."

"Where's Tony right now?"

"He is currently flying over Malibu at 100 MPH, temperature with wind chill 60 de…"

"No, weather, thank you Jarvis. I'm kind of busy, right now. Can you connect me to the suit, please? I need to give him an update."  
"Yes Mrs. Potts."

"Thank you."

She heard the ring once, twice, three times and then Tony picked up.

"Hey Pepper, missed me already?"

She gave a weak smile, "Yes, but we have a bigger problem."

"Wait… did something happen?"

"Yes… but I'll get to that later. Anyway…"

"Where are you right now?"

"I can't tell you over an open line."

"Well, I'll have Jarvis track you then."

"Somebody has a tag on you, Tony. They came to the restaurant and crashed the roof in and shot at everyone. He had one of those huge suits that can't fly well, but have tons of missiles and junk. He _knew _who I was. I swear to God."

"Shit, is everybody okay?" Tony said, sounding a whole heck of a lot angrier than he did before.

"Yeah, everybody's fine. I've been trained in the art of running in broken six inch heels."

"You've been trained in everything, Potts." He was smiling.

She blushed, "Anyway, where are you right now?"

"I can't tell you over an open line."

"Oh, shut up. You're flying, I'm on the ground. It's two totally different situations."

"I'll catch that guy as fast as I can, Peps, and get home."

"Don't cut corners on safety! I swear to God, if you rush and then get killed, it's not on my conscience."

"Got it. Love ya'!"

"Love you too."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Pepper hung up the phone. This was getting to be a whole heck of a lot more complicated than even she had predicted.

_Review! Review! Review!:)_


	8. Yes, We Do Have Oxygen Masks

_This chapter had me smiling, so I'm pretty sure it will have you smiling too(: I really hope you guys like this! Keep reviewing and story alerting... it seriously makes my day!_

Chapter 8

Pepper was willing to bet everything she had in her bank (approximately two-million dollars) that her parents had never ridden on a private jet. She would've lost. Her mother immediately began talking about the last time she'd ridden private and how she didn't see that there were any airbags or any oxygen masks available and how they literally sat on the floor.

Pepper didn't know where they'd flown, but it obviously wasn't anywhere in America.

Pepper's mother sat down in one of the comfortable chairs and immediately passed out, while Pepper flicked on the TV, searching through the channels until she found CNN which was of course broadcasting the whole attack on the restaurant thing. They even had repeat footage of her shouting at that Iron Menace. It was easy to admit she looked pretty bad-ass.

"…and we have conformation that this is Virginia Potts, co-CEO of Stark Industries and rumored fiancé of Tony Stark. You know, John, after everything she's been through I still never would've thought she could have pulled that one off. I mean God, what a woman."

Pepper rolled her eyes as they showed a video that someone had obviously taken at exactly the right moment. She and Tony were both facing the camera, their arms were locked together and Pepper was drinking a smoothie. Pepper couldn't remember ever walking outside of her house while locking arms with Tony, let alone drinking a smoothie from anywhere. They were walking so nonchalantly, like an old couple that it almost made Pepper want to cry. She needed him right now while he was off fighting for his life. It was something that had to be done, but something horribly grating as well.

It took Pepper a moment to notice that her Father was there. It almost seemed like he'd disappeared a lot the whole time they had been here. Pepper's mother was a severely dominating presence and when she talked _no_ one else was allowed to.

Mr. Potts looked Pepper directly in the eyes. He was a no nonsense kind of man and when he wanted to know something, he would get it out of them.

"Virginia, why with all the secrets? Why didn't you tell us about all this?"

Pepper stared at the floor, "Because I knew you'd hate me. Mom doesn't like it when girls are successful, you know."

He looked incredulous, "Where'd you get that from?"

"Mom has always said that women should sit around the house and take care of the babies and the men should work the steady jobs. And I absolutely, positively do _not_ agree with it."

"You don't agree with it, huh?" he looked at the floor for a moment, trying to formulate a response, but then shrugged, "Then what about all this Tony Stark business. You calling him Mr. Stark and the news says you're rumored to be engaged? Two people who are rumored to be engaged, Virginia, have to be spending a lot of time together for people to start to take notice. I think they'd be at first name basis by that point."

"Mom said she'd rip him limb from limb if he ever got near me. You do remember that conversation right?"

"Yes," he said with a smile, "But do you think your mother would rip your friend limb from limb, honestly."

"No, I knew she wouldn't do that. I knew she'd disown me and refuse to talk to me again…"

"C'mon Virginia, she wouldn't do that."

"She already has. Did you forget we haven't talked for the last fifteen years?... that's what Tony said. He said that I probably should just tell the truth because there was really nothing that could hurt me anymore."

"Virginia," her father stared at his hands, "Our absence from your life was not what we thought of as our decision. We thought of it as yours. After all, after you left for modeling school…"

"College, Dad. Not modeling: business school."

"Oh, yes, well, business school you didn't give us any indication you wanted a relationship. You completely cut off from us."

Pepper looked at her hands, "It was kind of like a test for me. I wanted to know if you loved me at all. I thought that if maybe I quit talking to you I would see if you really loved me completely. If you were willing to call me constantly even if I wouldn't answer, just because there was a chance that I might."

"Did you honestly think that was going to work? I mean who in their…"

"Tony did, Dad. Whenever I wouldn't answer my phone he would know something was wrong. He would call me a hundred times until I answered, asking me if I was okay. That was before we were together. That was when I figured out it was real. And it kind of solidified your answer, too."

Pepper stared at her hands for a second and then looked up again, "So why now? Why did you and Mom come now?"

"Because we felt that you needed us. We figured that you were living alone. Obviously, it seems, we were hiding under a rock all that time, for us to miss that our daughter was the CEO of a company."

Pepper rubbed the tears from her eyes. It was the sweetest thing that had been said to her all day. She was suddenly glad her mother was asleep.

_You like? Comment and alert or subscribe or favorite... or whatever you want to do!_


	9. Tony Stark, The Man on Fire

_Ello everyone! And the action begins! I hope you like this... it isn't my favorite chapter, but I had fun writing it soo... that's all that matters right? Keep commenting and favoriting or doing whatever you do best! And Fayetteville, NC? I've been there zero times. If I'm wrong about it being rural... I apologize to Fayettevillers...:( I am sorry I dissapointed you. I've only ever been to a cabin up in the mountains soo... enjoy!_

Chapter 9

It was 2 P.M. on a Sunday and Pepper had been in Fayetteville, North Carolina a month too long. She needed to get out. She talked to Tony every other day over a satellite phone and worked on planning her wedding. However, she was tired of living in this rural place. She needed to go back to work. To wander the halls of the mansion and Stark Industries, where everything was high-tech and grand.

Somehow, over the course of the month she'd been there, someone close to them had leaked to the press the details of their engagement. They'd even gotten a picture of the tiny engagement ring she wore, complete with its one tiny little diamond. Tony claimed he had interrogated everyone over satellite phone that he'd told and not one of them had shown signs of breaking or lying or telling the press.

The only people Pepper had told were Rhodey and her father (her mother still was oblivious to everything) and she knew neither of them had done it. Besides, her father didn't even go outside.

That part was a little scary to her. She knew as people got older they liked to rest more, but her father liked to rest as much as was humanly possible, then go and eat half of a huge pie while Pepper slowly chewed her salad after a jog. She was fine with her parents getting older, but she wasn't fine with them being hermits.

No one knew Pepper when she went into town. Some people recognized her from when she was a little girl, but nothing else was even mentioned. She hadn't even heard the words "Stark Industries" since she arrived. Pepper had never thought she liked being in the spotlight, but she suddenly felt like being thrust out of it was much worse. She felt like a recluse and when you're engaged to one of the most popular men on Earth, that is a very foreign feeling.

So it was with all this in mind that Pepper convinced her parents to stay with her in California for a week. Tony was gone, he had been gone ever since that day at the restaurant, but she could at least go to work and get something done. She longed to be home and known again. To be inundated with paparazzi. She was becoming a duplication of Tony Stark and honestly, was kind of proud of it.

The mansion was large, quiet and felt so inviting that Pepper wanted to cry. The master bed wasn't made and their closet was a disaster zone, but it still felt like a house out of a fairytale. You know, that fairytale! Where the poor girl from just outside of town falls in love and marries the prince.

Pepper went through the fridge and threw out everything. Milk was rotten and curdling, the ice cream looked even worse. She rubbed her eyes and carried the now full trash out to the curb for pick-up, looked around, found nothing to do and called Happy. She needed to get out of the house and it was time to go to work.

Pepper had missed California and she knew it the moment her limo glided into the parking lot. She had done up her hair, made up her face and put on a nice dress suit with a pair of stiletto heels, the highest ones she owned. She towered over everyone and looked professional. Perfect.

The lobby was busy and crowded. She saw a few news teams trying to get into somewhere, but security was blocking them. It was only natural that she skirted around them and held up her card to security, who let her through instantly.

The office was almost completely vacant with its two desks still sitting side by side. Tony's chair was turned around facing the window, and almost looked as if time had stopped and that any second it would continue with its spinning. Because when Tony was bored he spun in chairs.

Pepper snapped herself out of her reverie and sat down behind her desk, immediately pulling out her blackberry and beginning to answer the emails that she hadn't been answering while on leave. It only took fifteen minutes for her to finish, and be absolutely beside herself with boredom. For once she had no idea what was going on in the company. She had no idea what was happening, what deals were being made. She felt impatient and pushy. Maybe this time it really was PMS. She needed to know now!

The second Pepper stomped her foot she hear a BOOM!, not a simple I-just-stomped-my-foot- on-wood "boom" (that wouldn't have made sense, since Pepper was standing on tile), but a something-just-ran-into-the-side of-the-building BOOM! It had been a long time since Pepper had heard that sound.

All around her people were sticking their heads out of offices, trying to figure out what was going on. The room darkened and emergency lights flicked on. They were out of power. Then she heard somebody scream, "It's the 109th floor!"

Pepper couldn't remember thinking more quickly in her life that she did that day. She grabbed two random men from the office and darted up the stairs, as fast as she could in heels. As the ran she started to smell the smoke. This wasn't wood burning, it was something else.

109 was the ultra-private floor. The one so private it wasn't even on the elevator. You had to climb the stairs just to access it, and even then you needed a security card and she, she was in there several times a day.

107, 108, 109- and there they were. The air was so thick with smoke, Pepper could barely see. She kicked the door as far as she could and from the heat it collapsed easily. It was there when she saw it and started to shake. Lying flat on his back, still in his suit was Tony Stark… and he was on fire.

_CLIFFHANGER! OOOHHHHH:) What will happen to Tony? Will Pepper die from smoke inhalation? Will the building collapse? Will all things Pepperony be vanquished forever?_ _More action to come and lots more revelation and excitement!:) Keep reviewing and favoriting and I'll keep my writing on!_


	10. Why Are You Staring At Me?

_89 REVIEWS!? EEEKK!:) I love you all so very much, so I decided to update fast! Please keep commenting and faving and doing what you do best, because I really want you to be able to see the rest of this story that I have had sooo much fun writing! Don't worry, this is far from the end:) You aren't even to the twist yet:)_

Chapter 10

Pepper darted inside, her hands shaking and the two men followed her in. They had no way of protecting themselves. There was nothing they could do. Pepper took off her suit jacket and beat at the flames, trying to get the fire off of him and the metal to cool down, but she eventually just gritted her teeth, wrapped the jacket around her hands and picked him up by one flaming arm.

The jacket didn't help much, and neither did the two men, but they managed to drag him sideways out of the room and run down the eight flights of stairs to level 100. They laid him on the floor. Fully clad in his iron man suit, Tony Stark was still on fire and all the beating in the world wouldn't stop it.

Finally, someone offered up a cup of coffee. It was a last resort. If they poured water on the suit it could short circuit and shock Tony to death, but it was either that or him being burned alive. Pepper poured the coffee on and grimaced, but nothing happened, the flames just died a bit.

It took sixteen more cups of coffee before the fire died. Pepper's hands were hurting so badly that she was scared to look at them, but there was one last thing she needed to do. They had to get the armor off. The release switches were on either of his sides and at his knee joint. Pepper pushed down as hard as she could and the hatch clicked, but she had to keep holding it until someone else hit the other release button. Pepper's face dripped with sweat and her hands burned, but the armor slid off and Pepper was finally able to breathe again.

Tony Stark had prepared himself for a fire, and Pepper almost broke down crying when she saw that his only obvious damage was a scratch down the side of his face. He had a pulse, thank God, and thanks to his fire-proof suit lining he wasn't burned.

Their biggest problem? They couldn't get him to wake up. Slap after slap was to no avail. Most of the office was of the opinion that it was because of his smoke inhalation. Finally, after ten minutes of trying to wake him without a response, there was a decided agreement.

"He needs to go to the hospital." Said Jordan Landett from accounting, "He needs oxygen and that's something we can't give him."

"He can't go to the hospital," said Pepper, not caring about hiding her tears anymore, "He…"

And then she remembered. Remembered something very special about Tony Stark that most people didn't know.

"This stays here, you understand?" Pepper said as she unzipped his suit. And there it was, the arc implant. The thing that was keeping Tony Stark alive… and it wasn't glowing.

Pepper dashed into his office and rifled through his drawer. This was why she always told him to stay organized, so that in times of great need she would always know where to find things. He never heeded her warnings.

She finally found it: a small, white box the size of a Christmas ornament.

Pepper knelt on the floor next to Tony and, with the fearful eyes of everyone on the 100th floor, unscrewed the reactor and pulled it out. She had no way to tell if she was doing this right. She had learned from experience and she hoped her memory was doing her justice. Pepper plugged the reactor in and slammed it back into Tony's chest with the whack of her hand. She smiled at as it loaded and then slowly started to glow blue again.

She pulled out her blackberry and called the house. She really needed to change that answering machine, "I see you've made the choice to call me, wise choice, really, wise choice. Maybe if you call back later I won't ignore your call. Just…"

"Jarvis!"

"Can you do a full body scan of Tony through my blackberry?"

Jarvis seemed stumped and said curiously, "I'll try my best Ms. Potts."

Pepper waved it over him for ten seconds three separate times and finally Jarvis spoke again.

"Scan complete. Good job in installing the reactor, Ms. Potts. Tony should be awake in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…"

"What the hell are you all staring at me for?"

Pepper smiled what was probably the widest smile she'd shared with anyone in days.

"Peps? Why're you here? Am I in a hospital, cause you know I really don't like hospitals."  
He sat up and rubbed his eyes. Everyone was still staring at him.

"I'm not in a hospital. I'm in my office! What the hell is going on?"

He went to stand and promptly fell backward. Pepper wrapped an arm around him and steadied him.

"You crashed into the building in the suit. We had to carry you downstairs while you were still on fire and…"  
Tony grabbed her hands and stared at them. They were an inflamed red color and had already started to peel. She could feel them burning under his touch. It was worse than her worst sunburn and Tony had seen the effects of that.

"Pepper… why'd you do that? Look at your hands." He seemed heartbroken, like her hands were all that were left of her, "This is all my fault again, isn't it. It always is."  
She hugged him tight and smiled into his shoulder, "It was my choice to get involved with your insanity Mr. Stark, I really think that…" and then suddenly she realized where they were and that the entire room was acting as an audience, "…that we are out in public!"

It was at that moment, at the height of her emotions that the top of Stark Tower went into pieces and flew off into the air, to later be discovered in as many as thirteen different countries, Africa excluded and that Pepper, Tony and the rest of the crew that helped quench the fire were now standing on the top floor of Stark Tower.

There was a moment of shock where everyone just watched the pieces scatter into the wind and then Tony turned to Pepper and winked at her, "I guess it's time to rebuild again."

_Har dee har har!:) Cheesy... I know, but doesn't everyone need a little fluff now and then? So, who do you think is doing all this... all the breaking buildings and such? Make your predictions now and let me know who you think! REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! I love you all!_


	11. Rhodey to the Rescue

_I love all my reviewers and commenters so much:) You all really make me smile, but one just made me crack up! They were predicting who did it and they said something like "everything's low-key, so my guess is Loki." I love dumb stuff like that:) I was laughing pretty hard. Shout out to whoever wrote that comment! Thank you! _

Chapter 11

Pepper showered and pulled on a pajama top and sweatpants. It had been a long time since she'd had dinner with Tony and her parents together and she was determined that this one be less disastrous. That's why she wasn't making a big fuss out of it. She'd ordered pizza, some salads, and some soda and told her parents not to dress up. That there really was no reason to. It was just Mr. Stark who was coming over, not the King of England. Pepper was pretty sure her mom would show up wearing a gown. She still had no idea that Pepper and Tony were engaged, plus, Pepper still _technically _hadn't admitted it to her Dad. She'd just alluded to it and assumed she'd understood.

Pepper came down the stairs to the workshop to find Tony completely underneath one of his cars. She watched as what looked like a bucket of oil splashed down on his chest. He made a face and grabbed for a dirty rag to wipe his now dirty shirt, but Pepper pulled it away from him and sat down on top of his desk.

"What do you think you're doing? I told you to go take a shower!"

"I just need to finish this… first." Tony unscrewed another cap and more oil poured onto his chest.

"How long's that gonna take?"

"Well…" he said, sliding out from underneath the car and standing up in front of her, "Considering the amount of oil that just came out of where there's supposed to be absolutely none… I'd say five hours."

"You think I'm going to put off dinner for five hours so that _you _can finish working on a car."  
"Please?" his smile was hopeful; so hopeful Pepper almost did.

"No." she said in her mother-Pepper voice, "Now go take a shower."

Tony stuck his hands behind his back in a silent gesture of defeat, but the moment he got close enough he swiped at her. Pepper dodged his oil-covered hand and watched him stick his tongue out at her as he walked back up the stairs.

Pepper made her way around the oil on the floor to get to Tony's desk and retrieve the file she came down for. It was then that she saw something; a warning message that Tony obviously hadn't noticed as he made his way out of the workshop. Blinking on the screen of Tony's high-end computer were the words, "ATTENTION: DOWNLOAD 162838273 IN PROGRESS."

Typical Tony, forgetting about something he'd been doing twenty seconds earlier. She'd been in the room when an unknown download finished more than once and a fully-charged weapon went off right next to her head. It was a horribly frightening experience to say the least. She exited the download, shut down the computer, grabbed her file and went upstairs.

Pizza was already on the table by the time Pepper made her way up the stairs. She could smell it. However, she was in for a shock when she walked in on her parents holding hands across the table. Their eyes were closed, their heads were bent, and they were mumbling something in a different language. Pepper had been brought up Catholic and there had _never _been any worshipping around the table. Her parents had never been devout in any way.

Besides, the way they were mumbling made her feel uneasy. Catholics didn't worship in a different language, she'd been to church about 100 times. She knew that at the very least. Tony walked in the kitchen from behind her and she threw out a hand to stop him from walking forward. She regretted not being able to turn around and see his face but she could imagine he was freaking out. It was like they were speaking parseltongue, and that wasn't even accepted at _Hogwarts _for God's sake.

Steeling herself, Pepper walked in and sat down, breaking her parents out of… well…whatever they were doing.

"Nice ritual… or whatever…"

They both stared at the ground, not offering up any explanation as to what they'd been doing or why'd they been doing it. It was silent for about five tense seconds until Tony practically shouted, "How bout we eat?" Then immediately blushed.

Pepper struggled not to crack up laughing and was sure her face was just as red as his was. Instead she took out her blackberry and tried to make it look like she was doing something… anything.

"Aren't you gonna eat?" Tony asked, through a mouthful of pizza.

"Maybe… and chew with your mouth closed."

"You're not my mother."

"You're not mine!"

"Well, you didn't put off eating for me, and I'm not putting it off for you."

"I have a choice. You on the other hand, do not."

"What do you mean, I don't have a choice?"

"We both know fully well who's in charge here."

"Your legs?"  
"Oh… shut up."

"If I shut my darling little mouth, will you eat?"

"Maybe."

"Aww… you think my mouth is darling, Mrs. Potts."

"I think your mouth is a lot more darling shut, honestly."

"Ouch… you want some ice on that burn?"

Pepper couldn't help but laugh.

Pepper finally looked up from her Blackberry to find that her parents had been following this conversation aptly and their eyes were focused directly on her.

"Soo…" she said slowly, grimacing as she shut down her phone and awaited the 500 emails that were soon to pop up on her screen, "I didn't really get to show you around much while you were here, last time. Anywhere you are so desperate to see?"

"Not really." Her mother shrugged, "I'd be content just to stay in this wonderful house, forever."

"We went over this, mom," Pepper condoned, her mother didn't seem to want to grasp the lie, even though she'd taken all the other ones like they were candy, "It's an _apartment building_. As in: I want to rent an _apartment_ from that _building_ over there."

"Well…" said Mrs. Potts, savoring her pizza, "It doesn't seem to be much of an apartment building to me. No one else seems to live here. Do your apartments not get much business, Mr. Stark?"

"Oh, you know, this hou-apartment- that's what the technical term for a cozy place like this is: "hou-apartment"—is understandably out of the way. This is more for people with shorter commute times, or people who like to travel, like Mrs. Potts here."

"Do you get so close with all the residents, Mr. Stark?"

Pepper choked over her pizza and Tony almost did the same, but regained his composure.

"Oh, you know… I have big parties every once in a while in my buildings, and I get to know everyone that way… will- will you excuse me, for just one second?"

"Is the building going to collapse on top of us again, Mr. Stark?" Mrs. Potts said, with what Pepper assumed was supposed to be some hint of a sense of humor.

"Let's hope not."

Pepper got the feeling he was being completely sincere for the first time in ages.

It had been a long fifteen minutes at the dining room table. Typically, they would be watching Dance Moms with their feet propped up on couch cushions and drinking tiny little glasses of champagne while Tony commented on what he considered to be the best dance mom, Christy ("Because of her obvious charisma, Peps! Just look at her tear that girl down! I could totally see you doing that.")

Now, instead, her parents were staring blankly at the light blue wall, while Pepper quietly chewed her pizza in tiny pieces. Tony finally made his way back to the table and sat down for just long enough for Pepper to nudge him in the ribs.

"What the hell was that?" she hissed, just low enough that Mr. and Mrs. Potts couldn't hear.

"You'll see."

…

Sure enough, about two minutes later the doorbell rang and Tony sprang up to answer it, a look of gleeful trickery that only Pepper and a few others would ever recognize on his face. The door opened and, lo and behold, a very disgruntled Rhodey, holding a suitcase and glaring at Tony with all of the spite he owned.

"Sorry, Mr. Stark, forgot my key."

"Ah! James!" he said, as if surprised to see him, "Come in! We were just having dinner."

"Oh!" Rhodey exclaimed, in the least excited tone Pepper had ever heard him use, "Do you mean in the community kitchen?"

"Yep, just the one. Tonight, I'm supplying!"

Imagine the most stilted and robotic conversation ever, Pepper thought, and BINGO! You have this one.

And her mother fell for it… bait, line, and sinker…. That was the saying, wasn't it?

"A community kitchen?" she cried, almost sounding like she was a part of the act, "What an idea!"

"Yep, a new resident brings in a different food every night, so we have quite the variety… and quite the cultural experience!"

"It's revolutionary!" said Rhodey, in a tone that suggested that this was not revolutionary at all.

…

As soon as everyone was done eating Tony, Pepper, and Rhodey escaped into the kitchen to wash dishes.

"I swear to God, Tony, you are lucky I'm your best friend."

Pepper giggled, "I can't believe you agreed to come and _act _for our sake."

"Your sake," Rhodey said, glaring at Tony.

"Yah," said Tony, scrubbing dishes with a determined air of finality, and a happy smile, "The only reason he came was because I told him you were going to get reamed out by your parents if he didn't… but even you have to admit, Rhodes, that it was a pretty sick plan."

"If by sick you mean the literal term… then, yes, I agree. I can't believe you guys are lying to your family. You're lucky you have one."

Pepper looked down at the floor, feeling pretty ashamed of herself. Even though, at the time, it had seemed like the only option, she felt like a jerk.

Tony wrapped an arm around her, the one that wasn't covered in suds, and gave her a one-armed hug.

"Shut up, dude. Besides, Pepper's father knows… Pepper's just not ready to tell her Mom, yet."

Pepper pulled herself up until she was sitting on the counter and Tony finished washing off his hands.

"Rhodey, I am quite certain… in fact, I am 100% certain that my mother thinks Tony is a worthless bag of scum who prides on taking advantage of virgins and anyone who gets in his way. There is no way that she would _ever_ talk to me if she knew."

Rhodey grimaced, "Peps, I'm sorry, but there has to be another solution."

The whole kitchen sighed and Tony sat down on the floor, running a hand through his already tousled hair.

"You need a haircut." She said, looking down at him, "When do you want me to schedule one in? Before or after the conference with those men in China?"

"Before." He said with a groan, "Anything to put that off."

"Why is that such a problem?"

"All they ever want to talk about is upgrades to the suit and how I can benefit China's welfare… junk like that leads to 6 hour meetings… and boredom."

"I thought they were the ones shooting you out of the sky!"

"Trying to get my attention to call a meeting, obviously," he said with a smile.

"Oh, by the way, Tony, I shut down whatever download you had running on the suit schematics while you were down there. Didn't want some weapon unloading at my head."

"I didn't have a download going on." Said Tony, getting up from the floor and yawning.

"I shut _something_ down."

"Okay, Peps. Let's go see what damage you've done."

_What has Pepper done? Comment and subscribe! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE! Oh... and this chapter was really long for my standards so you'll be seeing some longer chapters lately! Except for the next one which I think is really short, but you'll see why and I may or may not post two chapters at the same time... keep commenting and reviewing and I just might do it!_

_Much love,_

_Sofie_


	12. Tony Is Wired

_Oh MY GAWD you guys! 90 something reviews? Thank you! I love you all so much! Hope you enjoy._

Chapter 12

The workshop was the same as he had found it when he'd first found his way inside five hours ago. It had only taken about five minutes to decode the security key and get into the workshop and five more to get onto the computer.

He had to admit, Tony Stark was wired with more security than most hackers would be able to handle… but not this one. He had been hired specifically to do an inside job. The POU had entrusted him with this duty. The POU had trusted him! Even the lowest in his clan knew what this meant. If the POU entrusted you with you with something, it was a must-do. No matter what the cost might be.

The computer's background was laughable, Tony and Pepper standing in front of what looked like an art museum. It had caught them right in the wrong moment: Pepper looking horribly tired and rubbing her eyes in a slightly angry way, and Tony, glaring straight at them camera. Stark had probably made this the background out of some sort of inside joke. It was just like him.

Maybe it was laughable, but he didn't laugh.

He'd stuck the pin drive in the slot and began the download. Hopefully it would go undetected. He'd deactivated the antivirus software on Stark's computer.

What he hadn't counted on was a nosy co-CEO deciding to turn off a download on what was supposedly "just-her-boss's" computer. He pulled the pin drive out of the slot, and stuck it in his pocket: he'd examine whatever the download had gotten when he was safely in bed.

It was obvious now that the whole "just-her-boss" thing was a ploy hiding the fact that they were together. What kind of coworker has your picture on their background if they're not involved outside of work with you, anyway?

He shook his head as he left the workshop. After all, he hadn't wanted her to get involved. She had made her choice. It wasn't his fault at all… was it? Was he right to feel guilty? No. He wasn't the idiot who had gotten involved with Stark.

Now they were both in danger, and there was no way anyone could stop it.

_I know, supah short, but I'm giving you clues here! Double update. Watch out for that next chapter! Much love,_

_Sofia_


	13. So When Does the Monster Jump Out Again?

_So what did that guy do in the workshop? What did he do? OH MY GOD, WHAT DID HE DO: Let us see!_

Chapter 13

Pepper and Rhodey followed Tony down into the workshop, feeling sluggish after their pizza party. All the lights were off.

"That's weird… I thought I left them on."

Tony dialed in his access code and with a gentle BING! The door slid open. The group stepped inside, and Pepper suddenly realized how close they were all standing to each other. She shook her head and willed herself to relax. Just because what Tony said had sounded like something in horror movie didn't mean it was.

"JARVIS: lights on."

Nothing happened. Now Pepper was feeling a little bit icy… a bit numb. Pretty much all the way down to her toes.

"JARVIS! Did you hear me? Lights on!"

Nothing again. Just silence… a deafening silence that weighed heavily on Pepper's ears.

"Where's the manual switch?" Pepper asked, trying to make her voice sound a lot more confident that she felt.

"Let me go find it… JARVIS, I did not tell you to shut down."

Pepper heard him move away from their place at the door and bang into several large pieces of machinery, cursing happily all the way. Then finally a grunt and the lights plunked on, one by one, leaving a lighted trail down the center of the elaborate workshop.

Tony sat down at his computer and looked around on the settings page.

"All my spyware settings are off." He sounded shocked, and Pepper watched as he pulled up a page covered only by lines and lines of code, "And JARVIS is completely shut down… it'll take hours to get him up and running!"

"Well, now we know what the download was doing."

"Oh... download… that's why we were down there in the first place… What did you say was up when you shut it down?"

"The suit… designs… schematics... your notes, I guess…"

"No... no, no, no, no, no."

Tony was frantically clicking through screens and Rhodey was shaking his head.

"You should've handed 'em over to the military Tony. Somebody was in here…"  
"How is that _possible._ I get alerted when someone's on the property…"

"JARVIS was shut down, Tony." Pepper said, sitting down on the table next to him.

"Wait… maybe the emergency cameras caught…"

They had all looked to the corners of the room. The cameras were gone, ripped right out of their expert wiring.

"Oh my god." Tony was staring at the screen, his mouth hanging wide open as he clicked through folder after folder, all devoid of any contents. Pepper had never thought of white to be a more horrible color… it didn't seem so pure anymore.

Rhodey, meanwhile, was moving on to a different conquest, and was checking the Iron Man display. The suit's holders were encased in bulletproof glass and were insanely heavy. No one, except someone who had backed up a pickup truck into the workshop could have carried them away, and sure enough… they were still present… just not the actual suits.

Pepper picked up a comb from the table and started yanking it through her hair, more trying to drown everything out than anything else. Everything having to do with Iron Man was gone… everything Tony had worked so hard to become was gone… so what was the thief's motive? To take down Tony Stark by destroying everything good in his life? (This villain had obviously seen too many superhero movies.)

After all, he had tried to kill her and her family. But taking the suit wouldn't fit into that… most people would see that as a burden for a partier like Tony. Most people would assume that he didn't like his title has "Iron Man": that he would exchange it in seconds for a life of wild partying and excessive drinking.

But then again… most people would also assume that as a coworker, Tony Stark wouldn't give Pepper a second glance. That meant one thing, and one thing only.

Whoever this person was, he was doing an inside job.

_Hope you like! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE COMMENT! I'd love to get to over 100! Thank you sooo much:) _

_Much love,_

_Sofia_


	14. What Tony Hates Most After Kardashians

_You guys are seriously amazing! I have never gotten over 100 comments! OHMYGAWD:) I am soooo happy right now! Thank you all soooo much3 Love this chapter. I hope you love it too!_

Chapter 14

Tony wouldn't have called the police except for the fact that Rhodey forced him. In fact, Pepper was pretty certain that there had been some physical force involved as well, due to the fact that she'd heard a slam and some yelling.

Next to the Kardashians, Tony didn't hate anything more than a policeman. Always telling him what to do and how to do it, showing off their fancy badges, and always asking him questions… but this time, even he had to admit he didn't know what to do. There was _no_ "correct course of action" that he considered plausible. There were no other options. They needed a second group of minds... ones who were bound by their wallets to be quiet about the whole operation.

Pepper was actually pretty impressed with the way Tony was handling having, what looked to be, a battalion of law enforcement in his home. True… he was pacing a rut in the floor, but at least he wasn't yelling.

_Which is a general improvement from the last time, _Pepper thought. She had pulled her hair up again and changed into a business suit (much to the disapproval of her mother) and was now in the process of being interrogated by the highest police officer there.

Sergeant John Tatingham was a member of the law enforcement Pepper had already had the pleasure of meeting. _More like displeasure_, Pepper thought. The man was tyrant. He ruled over those below him with an iron fist and interrogated as if he was on the verge of shooting you at any moment. His tyrannical attitude was complete with a small Hitler-style mustache that he figured would instill fear in those he was interrogating.

Pepper had deliberately chosen to talk with him in the kitchen so that Tony wouldn't go completely ballistic thanks to the way Tatingham was currently talking to her: a combination of a quiet yelling and screaming his head off.

"Miss Potts," he would begin with a whisper, head bent towards the floor, and then he'd look up, his face beet red, "Do you have ANY IDEA WHAT YOU'VE DONE BY LETTING THESE PLANS AND THESE… KILLING MACHINES OUT INTO THE WORLD? This is why YOU SHOULD HAVE GIVEN THEM TO THE US MILITARY!"

"That was not my decision, sir. I assume you can ask my coworker, Mr. Stark, what he was thinking when…"

"Ohhh… CUT THE ACT, POTTS! We all know that you are Stark's right hand man!"

"Woman." _Cool, calm and collected._

"If you have any idea what was in those plans," he began again in that quiet whisper, "you have fifteen seconds to tell me."

Pepper just raised her eyebrows and her chin at the same time, "I have no idea."

Tatingham's face was beet red again. He looked about ready to have a heart attack, seizure, or embolism…possibly a combination of all three. And then he bit his tongue.

"You may leave, Miss Potts." He said, and she could feel him watching her as she walked away.

"Wait, one moment…"

Pepper sighed. That was a typical police officer. They wanted to catch you when you were off your guard.

"While we were examining the crime scene we found your fingerprints on Mr. Stark's computer."

"Yes."

"I've never heard of two 'coworkers' hanging out so much after hours."

"We don't typically." Pepper wasn't quite sure where he was going with this.

"So why were your fingerprints there?"

_Oh._ He was trying to get her to confess. To confess to something she hadn't even been there for.

"I have no idea, Mr. Tatingham. As you know I was his PA for quite some time. Maybe he hasn't yet cleaned off his computer."

"Miss Potts, I'm not trying to get you to confess to a crime. I'm just curious about something."

_Oops, wrong again._

"Miss Potts," he paused, "If you aren't at all close to Mr. Stark… then what are your parents doing staying in his mansion... and what are your clothes doing in his closet."

No. No way.

"I'm uncertain if _that_ has anything to do with the investigation." She stuttered, doing her best to disguise how completely and totally thrown for a loop she was.

He leaned an elbow on the kitchen counter, "You said earlier that this had to be an inside job. No one that wasn't close to him would have known that Mr. Stark actually liked being Iron Man. I'm only trying to interview everyone on the inside… and I like to know who my suspects should be."

Pepper paused. There was no way out of this one. Her parents, after all, were here: her mother still oblivious that this was a mansion and not an apartment building.

She sighed, "All I ask is that you don't bring my parents into this. They were in the wrong place at the wrong time and they had nothing to do with what happened here tonight."  
Tatingham raised his eyebrows, "Your family was targeted, Miss Potts, that day at the restaurant. Do you not remember? Or are you saying that that was all just by accident. That there was somebody else in the restaurant who knew Tony Stark. That that was who was being targeted… and you were just in the way."

"Tony had just been there, they were probably targeting him!"

"If they were targeting Mr. Stark, Miss Potts, they wouldn't have wasted their bullets on a random girl standing in front of them. Especially when she told them blatantly that their 'target' had already left."

Pepper gaped at that. It was true. They had to have been targeting her. They'd just been waiting for the right moment: to get her alone and without Iron Man on her side to defend her. That meant someone in the restaurant had to have been feeding these people information. Telling them what was happening as it happened.

"Now…" his voice was like steel, "I am asking this as I am concerned for your safety and that of your family. Are you at all close to Tony Stark? And this time I want an honest answer. No games."

Pepper gritted her teeth, "Yes." The pencil was writing.

"Are you living with Tony Stark at this moment?"

She was staring at the floor, "Yes." Another jot on the notepad.

"Are your parents living with you?"

She looked up at him, "No. I was staying with them in North Carolina for my safety since that day at the restaurant. They came down here with me to stay for as long as I did. And thanks to… well, it might not be that much longer."

"Thanks to yesterday." He nodded and jotted it down on his notepad, "I heard about that 'little fire,' Miss Potts. They sure downplayed it in the news. Looked a whole heck of a lot like 9/11 to me."

"It wasn't that bad," she said, "Anyway, is that all?"

"One more thing…" he was looking at her strangely, "When I interviewed your parents they referred to the mansion as a hou-apartment. Any comment on that?"

Pepper smiled for the first time all day, "None whatsoever."

_Who dun it? Comment and subscribe all you fabulous people! Thank you sooo much for all the support! Oh and by the way, I have nothing against the Kardashians(: I'm actually a huuuge fan of Keeping Up With the Kardashians, but my dad hates them sooo..._

_Much love,_

_Sofia_


	15. Don't React To This Message

_Thank you sooo much for all the reviews and support! I love you all sooo much(: Anyway, what happens when five dogs go to a club? Read on to find out. _

_Oh and in response to that aptly named reviewer, I said this before, but this is fan**fiction **correct... not fannonfiction? It's unrealistic, yes, but that doesn't mean it isn't fun to read and fun to write. Thank you for your input, but I'd prefer constructive criticism rather than what you're doing. _

Chapter 15

"So they found nothing." Rhodey said, staring down at the imported mahogany of the dining room table, "Absolutely nothing."

"I knew the police were a waste of time," Tony said, flipping through channels at full velocity to the point that Pepper knew he wasn't really looking.

"What'd they ask you?" Tony asked, looking up at her. Pepper wondered if he'd been asked the same questions and if he'd responded the way she did. She probably should have considered his feelings before telling the authorities that they were living together.

Tony raised his eyebrows and then turned his attention back to the TV, "I know… I did the same thing." He must have read the anxiety on her face.

"So now what?" Pepper asked, sinking down onto the couch beside him, "If we can't find the suit, then what are you gonna do?"

"It's only been a day," he said, wrapping his arm around her shoulders, "It's not like they could have taken it too far. There's no way they could have flown it anywhere unless they had a private jet…" he paused and then looked up again a mischievous smile on his face, "Rhodey's always wanted a suit. You could have asked for one, you know, buddy?"

Rhodey smirked at him, "I had used up my fun limit in that suit in the first twenty seconds I wore it. I always did have fun beating your ass."

Pepper cracked up and Tony rolled his eyes, "Your creativity is unsurpassed, my friend, but you cannot match the power of the pun… What happens when five dogs go to the club?"

Rhodey and Pepper looked at him expectantly. Tony sighed, "Let's try this again: what happens when…"

"What?" Rhodey and Pepper chorused.

"Air buddies in the club getting tipsy!"

"Ah…ha-ha…ha-ha!" Pepper said, smiling genially.

Rhodey just stared, "That was the most pathetic thing I have _ever _heard."

"Maybe you didn't get the joke... Air Buddies are the puppies of the basketball playing dog, Air Bud… you know the dog I'm talking about Rhodey… because I specifically remember you…"

"Okay… I got it, I got it! Very funny."

"Thank you."

The door opened and Tony pulled his arm out from behind Pepper and turned on Dance Moms, immediately sinking in to Christy's latest tirade.

"Virginia!" Pepper's mother hissed, "Get dressed! Now!"

"Wait… what for?" Pepper said, jumping to her feet. Tony had the decency to look up.

"I'll explain on the way. Go! And not in those hideous work clothes either."

Pepper darted up the stairs and Tony turned down the volume on the TV.

"What going on, Mrs. Potts? Is something wrong?"

"No… no, no, no, no," she said, and he saw she was smiling. Something had to be up, "I just- well, while Harold and I were down at the coffee shop we met this nice boy; a doctor for God's sake! He's just graduated and he's single!"

Mrs. Potts was so excited she didn't even register the look on Tony's face.

"I asked him how long he'd be there, and he said probably all night (busy studying I'm sure), and I told him he just _had _to meet my daughter, Virginia. Oh, they're going to hit it off so well, don't you think!"

"Umm…"

But at that moment Pepper bounded down the stairs, looking as startlingly beautiful as ever in a work dress and was herded out the door by Mrs. Potts, hardly having the time to give Tony as startled look.

Tony looked at Rhodey. Rhodey looked at Tony. There was no safe course of action in this situation either, and something told them the police weren't going to be much of a help.

Pepper sat down inside the limo, eyeing the seat where Tony typically sat next to her, and wondered why he wasn't going with them. Her mother sat down next to her, having left their father back at the house. Pepper fluffed up her hair.

"So…" she said carefully, "Care to tell me where we're going?"

"Nope," Mrs. Potts said with a smile, "I'll tell you when we get there."

Whatever had her so excited definitely couldn't be good. After all, the only times she had seen her mother smile were times when she was in pain: when she was wearing that pinching Easter dress, when she was finally eating her brussel sprouts.

Pepper followed the limos every move as it turned corner after corner; its bulletproof glass was just barely see-through. She knew where they were heading: the coffee shop. What was her mother thinking? The phone in her lap vibrated and she picked it up and opened the text.

TotallySexy says: This is Tony Stark. Do not react to this message. You are in grave danger.

PepPotts says: You've watched the Da Vinci Code one too many times, Tony.

TotallySexy says: Your mother can't have told you where you're going then.

PepPotts says: Oh god.

TotallySexy says: She's setting you up on a date!

PepPotts says: OH MY GOD!

TotallySexy says: Are you reacting? I told you not to react to this message!

PepPotts says: Shut up... Totally Sexy? What the heck, Tony? What'd she say?

TotallySexy says: Haha;P She says he's a doctor.

PepPotts says: ICK!

TotallySexy says: That's it… and why ick?

PepPotts says: Oh lord, I gotta go.

TotallySexy says: Much love!

_No, this isn't just a filler chapter. It's actually key to the plot. What are Tony and Rhodey doing while Pepper isn't home? And eww... no. It's not that. Haha(: Who dun it? Let me know! REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!_

_Love,_

_Sofia_


	16. Everybody Loves a Good Gay Friend

_OH MY GOD! I am soooo sorry! I have not updated in such a long time. So here you go. I will stop neglecting you now! Much love. _

Mrs. Potts walked Pepper into the room with a devilishly wide smile on her face: something Pepper once had thought only Tony capable of. The coffee shop was mostly empty, except for a few homeless guys who would obviously be overnight customers.

In comparison, the Doctor was pretty good looking, but if he'd been out on the street he'd just have been a face in the crowd. There was definitely nothing that made him stand out from the world's billion other faces.

"Virginia," Mrs. Potts said, still holding onto that overly eager smile as the Doctor stood up, "This is Thomas."

_Thomas? _Pepper though, _As in Thomas the Train Engine?_

Pepper could tell the Doc- Thomas was in shock. He'd been expecting a nice, sweet little girl named Virginia. What he'd gotten was Pepper Potts, someone who was virtually a celebrity. She was at least five times as rich as he was, and Pepper could tell immediately that pride was what had kept him from getting a girl in medical school. He wanted his wife to make less than him and take care of the kids.

_No wonder my mother liked him! _Pepper thought, _He shares her ideals._

"Okay!" Mrs. Potts said uneasily, looking taken aback by the expression on his face, "I- I'll just leave you two alone then."

Pepper sat down slowly and then bit her lip.

"She said your name was Virginia." He said, staring at her embarrassed face, "Not Pepper. I thought you and…"

"You don't want to do this," she said in a hushed voice, leaning closer to him, "And neither do I. My mother set us up without knowing the details of my home life and now…"

And that was when he leaned forward and kissed her. Pepper broke the kiss apart as soon as she could and looked down at him in horror. He was smiling broadly.

"Why the hell did you do that?" she half whispered, half yelled, her voice squeaking like a pubescent boys'.

"I'm gay!" he was smiling, and she suddenly noticed how clean he was, and how perfectly he was dressed, "I've always wondered how it would be to kiss Tony Stark!"

She debated whether or not to slap him across the face, but eventually decided that it would be bad for publicity and settling on huffing at him. He was the kind of guy that it was hard to be angry at. He looked happy constantly!

"I'm sorry if I offended you, Miss Potts." He said with a little smile, "I've just always been so jealous of you! I mean… c'mon… look at how hot he is!"

Pepper couldn't help but crack up.

"You're telling me!"

He jotted his number down on a napkin, "Is there any way you could have him text me? Please?"

"I'm sure, I can do something." Pepper said, smiling wide and taking his number. Hopefully this would satisfy her mother.

Pepper walked to the back of the coffee shop and pulled her mother by the arm.

"So, how'd it go?" she said eagerly, her smile infectious.

"He gave me his number!" Pepper feigned excitement.

"Ooooh, Ginny!" she smiled, "You'll be married in no time!"

Pepper giggled, "I'm sure of that."

_Sooo... you like? Comment and fave and story alert... or whatever you wanna do! I love you all!  
_

_Much love,_

_Sofia_


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